Paul and Lucy Spadoni periodically live in Tuscany to explore Paul’s Italian roots, practice their Italian and enjoy “la dolce vita.”
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Sunday, April 10, 2011

A vacation within a vacation

Even though our entire stay here could be classified as vacation, our purpose is not that of typical tourists. Our overriding purpose is to discover what it is like to be Italian, even though we know that’s an impossible goal in three months. Now we decide to take a mini-vacation to the Garfagnana valley, which is rarely on the itinerary of American tourists. Italians would make this trip by car, but we are on a budget and must take the train that goes from Lucca all the way up the valley and through the Alpi Apuane to Aulla. This cute little train consists of only two or three cars and runs on gas instead of electricity.

We pick out a town about three-quarters of the way to end of the line and decide to get off there and find a place to stay. We find a little bed and breakfast right at the foot of the Rocca, a small fortress and residence, in Camporgiano. The owner of the bed and breakfast also owns the Rocca, which she periodically opens to the public, and today is one of those days. We enjoy a spectacular 360 degree view of the surrounding hillsides and cities as we walk high atop the fortress walls.

By walking and taking the train, we are also able to see two other little cities, Poggio and Piazza al Serchio. We spend most of the time just walking around looking at farms, people in the piazzas and the lush green landscape. We have brought our bicycles but did not count on every city being perched on a hillside, and thus we do most of our exploring on foot. The trip is sunny, peaceful, largely uneventful and definitely refreshing.

Lucy atop the Rocca. Pictured below is the Rocca, and the vine-covered building to the right is where we stayed overnight. At the bottom is a view of the other side of the valley, taken from atop the Rocca.

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About Me

First off, before you hassle me about our title, Lucy thought of it. Yes, I know some people may think broad is derogatory, but the etymology is uncertain and she doesn’t find it offensive, and it made me laugh. We have been married since 1974 and are empty-nesters now, which allows me to bring my submerged Italophilia into the open. We first came to live in Italy from February-April in 2011 and have returned during the same months every year. From 2011-2015, we lived in San Salvatore, at the foot of the hilltop city Montecarlo, where my paternal grandparents were born, raised and, in 1908, married. In late 2015, we bought a home in Montecarlo. We come for a variety of purposes: We want to re-establish contact with distant cousins in both Nonno’s and Nonna’s families, we want to learn the language and see what it is like to live as Italians in modern Italy, we like to travel and experience different cultures. Even if we aren’t successful at achieving these purposes, we love Italy and enjoy every moment here, so there is no chance we will be disappointed. I am grateful to God for giving me a wife who is beautiful, clever, adaptable and willing to jump into my dreams wholeheartedly.